Manure gatherer and loader.



No. 686,532. v

Patented Nov. l2, l90l. J. PETERSON.

MANURE GATHEBER AND LOADER.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1900.)

(No ModelJ' 3 Sheets-Sheet L FIGJ.

WITNESSES \NVENTOR JOHN PETERSON HIS ATTORNEYS No. 686,532. Patented Nov. I2, 190i. J. PETERSON.

MANURE GATHERER AND LOADER.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1900.)

(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

FIG.Z

'NVENTOR JOHN PETERSON 62 W 25 BY WM/ HIS ATTORNEYS.

No. 686,532. Patented Nov. 12, 190i.

- J. PETERSON.

MANURE GATHEREB AND LUADEH.

(Application filed Oct. 18, 1900.)

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

"NVENTOR JOHN PETERSON BY H15 ATTORN EYS m5 NORRIS PETER$ co. PHOTO-LITHO, WASWNGTON, 0.1:.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFF-ICE.

JOHN PETERSON, OF ST. PETER, MINNESOTA.

MANURE GATHERER AND LOADE R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 686,532, dated November 12, 1901.

Application filed October 18, 1900. Serial No. 33,431. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JOHN PETERSON, of St. Peter, in the county of Nicollet and State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Manure Gat-herers and Loaders, of which the followingis a speci fication.

My invention relates to man ure-loaders,and particularly to that class wherein a fork or shovel device is provided and operated by a suitable hoisting or elevating apparatus.

The primary object of the invention is to provide an improvement'over the construction of the fork device shown and described in Letters Patent of the United States granted to me September 13, 1898, No. 610,609.

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved hoisting apparatus that is simple in construction, easily operated, and capable of attachment to the walls of a barn or other building.

The invention consists generally in various constructions and combinations, all as hereinafter described, and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a view showing the apparatus in use. Fig. 2 is a view of a hoisting apparatus to be used when the material is to be gathered up or loaded in the field or in the yard at a distance from the barn. Fig. 3 is a plan view of the fork device. Fig. 4 is a similar view of the outer end of the operating-handle. Fig. 5 is a sectional view on the line 00 0c of Fig. 3, showing in dotted lines the position of the fork after dumping its contents. Fig. 6 is a side view showing the fork partly tilted. Fig. 7 is a transverse section through the fork and its frame. 'Figs. 8 and 9 are details of the pivotal connections between the hoisting-boom and its upright support.

In the drawings, 2 represents the beam or operating-handle of the fork, provided at its outer end with a cross handle 3. The frame of the fork comprises bars at 4, that are bolted securely to the handle near its end and project diagonally therefrom on each side and are provided with forwardly-extending parallel arms or extensions 5 5, between which the fork proper is supported. A cross bar or rod passes through the end of the beam 2 and connects the bars 4 4 and serves to strengthen and brace the frame of the fork. The frame is further strengthened by means of the brace rod 7, connecting the bars 4 and secured to the top of the handle. The supporting-arms 5 5 are thus held rigidly and'prevented from twisting or bending out of position when the fork is in use. The outer ends of the arms 5 are preferably connected by a rod 8, which passes through holes in a series of tines or arms 9 arranged thereon. The lower edges of the arms or tines extend, preferably, below the frame of the forkand are flattened to form shoes or runners, on which the device slides easily when beingdra wn over the ground. The outer ends of the tines are pointed to dig into the material more readily,and their inner ends are upwardly turned and securely riveted to a cross-bar 10. These tines are preferably separated on the rod 8 by a series of tubes or sleeves 11, arranged between them, and at the ends of the rods 8 are bushings 13, secured on plates 14, that are preferably riveted to the outer tines or arms. Said bushings extend through holes in a bail 14, pivotally supported on said rod, and through the ends of the arms 5. These bushings permit the nuts on the rod 8 to be turned up without binding the fork and bail. The bail 14' is provided near its ends with ofisets 15, which cause the bail to stand out away from the fork and prevent'it from obstructing the material thereon. A quadrant or rack-bar 15 is provided on the fork, having one end secured to the cross-bar 10 and its opposite end mounted on the cross-bar 8. A locking pin or bar 16 is mounted in guides 17 on the handle 2 and is normally held forward in engagement with the teeth of the rack-bar by a spring 18. A lever 19 is pivoted on the handle 2 near the cross-handle 3, and a rod 20 connects said lever with the bar 16. The fork device is adapted to swing freely on its pivot and when gathering up the. material will slide'easily over the ground, the rod 8 being raised out of contact therewith by the lower edges of the arms or tines. The bail 14: and the fork being mounted on the same pivotal center the draft of the fork will be lighter and the device more easily handled than where the pivots of the bail are above those of the tilting fork. The shape of the bail and frame permits the fork to make a complete revolution therein. Consequently when a forkful of material has been gathered up the operator upon releasing the locking device will permit the fork to tilt or swing through the bail over to the position indicated by dotted linesin Fig. 5. I have found this construction of the device particularly convenient and useful when it is used for gathering up manure or other material into a pile in the yard or field. At such times the fork-load is more easily discharged if the fork is allowed to tilt or swing through the bail and turn completely over when its end strikes the pile of material that is being collected. The fork is then instantly freed of its load, and when the operator draws the device back away from the pile the fork will return to its normal position and be locked ready to gather up another load. \Vhen, however, the device is used for loading the material directly into a wagon, Iprefer to provide means for preventing the complete reversal of position of the fork, or, in other words, to prevent it from turning completely over and swinging through the bail, as this movement is not necessary to discharge the fork of its load when it is suspended over a wagon. This means consists, preferably, in a removable bolt or pin 21 fitting within a socket in one of the outer arms or tines and adapted to engage the bail and lock the fork againstfurther movement when it has tilted to a certain predetermined position, as indicated in Fig. 6. The fork is pivoted, as hereinbefore noted, back of the center of the arms or tines, so that the load will cause the same to tilt as soon as the locking-pin is discharged or released from the toothed bar. \Vhen, therefore, the loaded fork has been raised above the wagon and released, its load will cause it to tilt automatically and discharge its contents, the tilting movement being, however, limited by the stop device hereinbefore described. This stop allows the fork to tilt sufficiently to discharge its load, but prevents it from turning over on its pivots, and when the apparatus is lowered to the ground after dumping the end of the tines will strike the ground and return the fork to its normal position ready for use. If a form of stop were not used, it would be necessary after the load was dumped into the Wagon to either-swing the fork back to its normal locked position by hand or drag it along the ground until it tilted or swung back itself.

I prefer to provide guides 22 on the outer arms of the fork to engage the arms 5 and prevent the fork from racking or twisting to one side and preventing the locking-bar from engaging the toothed bar. I also prefer to provide a pin 23 on the handle 2 to be grasped by the operator for convenience in moving the apparatus.

Various forms of hoisting devices may be employed in the use of the fork device; but

where the material to be gathered up is near a barn or other building I prefer to provide a boom 24., having bars 25 secured to its lower end, between which a block 26 is pivoted, having stud or shank 27, supported in brackets 28, secured to the wall of the building. The shanks 27 turn freely in their supports and permit the boom to swing freely in either direction, according to the location of the material to be gathered together. The boom is supported at its outer end by a rope, chain, or cable, connecting it with a suitable hook in the wall of the building, and a sheave 30 is provided near the outer end of said boom, over which a cable passes to a block 31, supported on the upper walls of the building, and from thence to a block and pulley 32, pivotally supported near the base of the building, and thence to a suitable source of power. The opposite end of the cable passes over a pulley 33, mounted in a block having a hook to engage the bail of the fork,and from thence passes to a suitable ring near the end of the boom. Power being applied to the cable the fork will be dragged over the ground and, guided by the operator, will gather up a load of material until it is beneath the boom,where it will be raised up, and the operator swinging the boom on its pivot will release the fork when over the wagon and permit it to discharge its contents therein. The fork is then allowed to drop back upon the ground, and the operation is repeated until the wagon is loaded. Instead of loading the material upon a wagon it may be drawn together in a pile, the operation being substantially the same, except that it is not necessary to hoist the fork as high unless the operator desires to deposit each load upon the top of the pile. It sometimes happens that the material to be gathered up is at a distance from the wall of a building, and I therefore prefer to provide the apparatus for hoisting the fork, (shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings,) which consists in a mast 34, mounted in a foot-plate 35, that is held securely by pins 36, said mast being provided near its lower end with a pivoted pulley-block 37 and near its upper ends with the sheaves 38. The boom is pivotally connected to the lower end of the mast and is supported bya rope or cable 39, passing over one of the sheaves 38. A draft-cable passes through the pulleyblock 37, over the remaining sheave 38, and thence to the boom. In place of guy-ropes for supporting the mast in an upright position I prefer to provide bracing legs or beams 40, provided at their upper ends with brackets 41, having holes to receive a pin 42, provided in the upper end of the mast 34. The lower ends of the legs 40 are secured in the ground by pins or other suitable means.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. The combination, with a suitable operating-handle, of a frame secured thereon, a

fork or scoop pivotally supported in said frame, a bail pivoted in said frame, a suitable stop provided on said fork and adapted to engage said bail to limit the tilting movement of said fork, means for locking said fork, and means for unlocking it to permit the discharge of its load, substantially as described.

2. The'combination, with a suitable han dle, of a frame secured thereon, a fork or scoop pivotally supported in said frame, a bail also pivoted in said frame, a removable pin or bolt provided on said fork and adapted when said fork is tilted to engage said bail, means for locking said fork in its normal horizontal position, and means for disengaging said locking means to permit said fork to tilt and discharge its load, substantially as described.

3. The combination, with a boom, of an upright support therefor a hoisting-tackle, a bail, a fork or scoop pivoted upon a suitable operatin g-handle,means for locking said fork, means for disengaging said lockin g means to permit said fork to tilt and discharge its contents and means for limiting the throw or stroke of said fork, substantially as described.

4. The combination, with a boom, of an upright support therefor, a hoisting-tackle, a suitable operating-handle, a frame secured thereon, a fork or scoop pivotally supported in said frame, a bail also pivoted in said frame, means for locking said fork in its normalposition, means for disengaging said locking means to permit said fork to tilt and discharge its contents and a stop device for limiting the throw or stroke of said fork, substantially as described.

5. The combination, with the wall of a building and a bracket 28 secured thereon, of a boom 24 having a block 26 pivotally supported in said bracket, a sheave 30 provided near the upper end of said boom, pulleyblocks 31 and 32, a fork having a suitable operatinghandle, a cable secured to the building-wall and connected to the upper end of said boom, and a second cable attached to the upper end of said boom and passing over a pulley provided on said fork and over said sheave 30 and said pulley-blocks 31 and 32 to a suitable source of power, substantially as described.

6. The combination, with a boom, of means for supporting the same upon the upright wall of a building and permitting its partial revolution thereon, a hoisting-tackle for said boom, an operating-handle, a scoop or fork pivotally connected with said operating-handle, a suitable bail for said fork connected with said hoisting-tackle, a stop device provided on said fork and adapted to engage said bail to limit the tilting movement of said fork, means for locking said fork in its normal position, and means for operating said locking means to release said fork and permit it to discharge its contents, substantially as described.

7. A manure gatherer and loader, comprising an operating-handle, 'a frame secured thereon, a series of arms or tines arranged at intervals and pivotally supported in said frame, the lower edges of said arms being below said frame and adapted to bear upon the ground when the device is drawn over the same, means for locking said arms and releasing them to permit the discharge of the load, and a suitable bail connected with said frame, substantially as described.

8. In a manure gatherer and loader, the combination, with a handle 2, of a frame secured thereon, a pivoted fork supported in said frame and adapted to swing freely therein to'discharge its contents, means for locking said fork against accidental movement, and a bail supported in said frame on a common pivot with said fork, said pivot being in the plane of the fork tines or arms, substantially as described.

9. The combination, with a handle 2, of bars 4 having arms 5 secured thereon, a fork comprising a series of arms provided between said arms 5, a rod connecting said arms 5 and passing through holes in said fork arms, means for locking said fork and means for disengaging said locking means to permit the fork to tilt and discharge its load, and a bail pivoted on said rod, substantially as described.

10. The combination, with a handle 2, of bars 4 having arms 5 secured thereon, a rod connecting said arms 5, a fork comprising a series of arms or tines 9 pivotally arranged at intervals on said rod, means for locking said fork, means for disengaging said looking means to permit the fork to tilt, a bail pivoted on said rod between said arms 5 and said fork, said bail having offsets 15, for the purpose specified.

11. In a manure gatherer and loader, a frame having a suitable handle, in combination with a fork pivotally supported therein, and a bail having a common pivot with said fork and said pivot being in the plane of the fork tines or arms, substantially as described.

12. In a manure gatherer and loader, a frame having a suitable handle, in combination with a fork pivotally supported therein, said fork comprising a series of tines or arms, the lower edges of which are below said frame to form runners or shoes when the fork is drawn over the ground, and a suitable bail connected with said frame, substantially as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 15th day of October, 1900.

JOHN PETERSON.

In presence of- RICHARD PAUL, M. O. NooNAN. 

